Thirty years ago, a hospitality course showed Betty what she was capable of

Betty Lappin still laughs when she remembers the three words she used to describe herself on the first day of a hospitality course more than 30 years ago.

"Forty, fat and a farmer."

What stands out most about the Certificate III in Hospitality she completed through Bundaberg Skills Centre Inc, now IMPACT Community Services, isn't the restaurant service, food preparation or wine knowledge.

It's how different she felt when she walked out the door.

The woman who walked into the classroom unsure of what she had to offer left with something she hadn't expected: confidence.

“Knowing that I could learn something else at 40 from thinking I had no skills,” Betty said. “It was like, 'wow'.”

It was a turning point she can still trace through the rest of her life.

At the time, Betty was looking for a fresh start after a downturn in the local farming industry left her family facing an uncertain future.

“I'd never been on benefits in my life,” she said.

“I went, 'Okay, let's try something.' So I gave this a go. It was great.”

One of the biggest moments came during the course's final assessment, when students were required to serve members of the public, including the Mayor and councillors.

Betty wasn't convinced she was ready, but her trainer, Steve Beer, was.

“I told him I didn't want to do it. I couldn't do it. It was too much,” she said.

“And he said, 'Get out there. Just do it.' And I did. I survived.”

Looking back, Steve remembers Betty growing in confidence throughout the program.

“I remember seeing her confidence grow, and she took her course really seriously,” he said.

While hospitality wasn't where Betty built her career, the confidence she gained through the course stayed with her.

Over the years that followed, Betty completed a Certificate IV in Training and Assessment and a Diploma in Human Resources.

She went on to teach at TAFE and spend decades working in employment services and apprenticeship and traineeship programs, helping others build their careers.

“Those sorts of jobs give you so much because you get to know the whole town, the whole region. I loved it.”

The confidence she gained didn't just shape her career. It also shaped her role in the community.

She became a founding member of the Bundaberg Business Women's Network, later serving as president and becoming a life member.

More than 30 years after graduating, Betty can draw a straight line from that hospitality classroom to the life and career that followed. “The basics of that Certificate III will get you through everything in life.”